Jon Jansen Talks Redskins Football

Jon Jansen anxious to help bring physical style of football to Detroit Lions offensive line

For all the heartache about what has or hasn't happened with the Washington Redskins over the past decade, they're still not the Lions. Which is why a guy can get cut from the Redskins, get signed by the Lions, immediately start talking about importing the physical nature of Redskins football, and not get smirks. It doesn't mean what it used to mean, but being a Redskins offensive lineman still means something in this crazy mixed-up world.

"You know, what I learned from being in Washington was the importance of having a physical line," he told reporters in Detroit this week. "And you're gonna get banged up. When you have a physical offensive line, you're gonna get banged up, you're gonna have broken fingers, you're gonna have things that hurt, and you have to be able to fight through those things. You have to be able to keep your level of play up and play through those things. And I think that's something I can bring to this team, and say, hey, you know, it's a certain style of football that we have to have. It's a certain style in terms of being physical, running the ball and setting things up in the passing game that you have to establish."

Enough to make you feel like you're back in '88, right? Plus, the Detroit papers are reporting that Jansen "was nicknamed "The Rock" in Washington--I kind of missed that one. Though I do remember Rock Cartwright being nicknamed "Big Tall White Guy."

Speaking of physical offensive line play, Andre Carter was complaining repeatedly yesterday about being "combo'd" by a tight end and tackle.

"My whole career, I have never been combo'd like that," he said. "Maybe once in my whole career.

"Hey, that's what Buges is doing baby," Mike Williams countered. "When you run it right, that's what happens. Hey, we're getting right over there man."

Jansen, by the way, still feels like he's got a lot of football to play.

"I still feel like I've got a lot of football to play," he said, proving my point. "I'm not ready to retire. I've had some injuries in the last four or five years, but I've also had injuries that I've been able to play through. I feel like I still have a lot of good football left in me and I want to come be a part of bringing the Lions up to where they should be along with the other sports teams in this town."

Well, good luck with that, but I guess he is going from the No. 1 sports entertainment option in D.C. to the No. 4 sports entertainment option in Detroit.